


This City of the Dead

by cjr



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Apocalypse, CAUTION: ABANDONED, F/M, I'm going to try to rewrite this in the not-first person way because i can't stand it right now, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-12-14
Updated: 2014-07-02
Packaged: 2018-01-04 14:09:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1081938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cjr/pseuds/cjr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Derek Hale just lost his entire family and is on a search for his sister, who is in New York.  That is, if she's still alive.  Because, after all, an unknown disease has plagued the entire world.  Derek slowly makes the lonely trip to New York, but when he picks up a hitchhiker with the same destination, he finds that the trip seems to be harder than he bargained for.  Because when you are searching for your family, there isn't time to search out love.  But what happens when love sticks its thumb in the air and stumbles into your car?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. First Impressions

**Author's Note:**

> So I don't really know where this is going. Or if its going much of anywhere. Please comment if you like it or have any suggestions. This is my first fic ever so I'd love to know what you guys think! I will update the tags as the story progresses and I realize where it is going.

            Sometimes I wonder how many people actually feel.  Like really feel.  I used to think that everyone could feel.  Maybe I was right.  Maybe then they could.  But now emotion is difficult, it’s dangerous.  I don’t feel anymore.  And I would suggest it for any newly orphaned kid.  It’s a great narcotic.  It also helps in the instantaneous decision to leave home.  Just pack, fill the tank, and your gone.  No hugs, no tears, no one else but me.

            So why am I worried about that kid walking down the road alone?  I shouldn’t be.  God knows I’ve already been hurt enough from caring about someone.  And I’ve seen enough death that watching someone die was as easy as blinking.  And that’s all I could do now when someone died.  Blink.  Because emotion was bad.  So I stopped feeling a long time ago. 

            But here I am.  Pulling my rust bucket to the side of the road anyway.  _Stupid._   “Where you headed to?”

            He glanced up, unsure whether to even respond.  Guess he decided I didn’t look like a serial killer though because he replied, “Away.”

            “Me too.  Get in.”  After he stepped into the car I hit the gas and we flew away again.  It’s dangerous to stay in one place for a long time.  It’s also dangerous to invite a stranger into your car.  But I guess someone decided not to follow the rules.  But what is someone supposed to do, when they hadn’t bothered talking to another person in a long while.

            And that’s not because the human race is extinct or anything.  Just more… reclusive.  I’m not even sure why exactly.  I mean I’m not stupid so I know it has something to do with ‘The Disease’ but I don’t know much.  All I know is that it’s deadly.  It can kill an entire family in a fortnight.  Leaving one son alone because of some sort of immunity.  Because he had a genetic predisposition for cancer that he received experimental treatment for days before The Disease broke out.

            I looked over to the seat next to mine.  The kid was gangly.  Like think twigs glued together by a five year old for some sort of school project.  That he was still breathing was a sign of strength, that he was even able to breathe must have been an act of God.  He had really messy brunet hair, almost to his shoulders.  He had quite a few freckles—or were they moles? — dotting his face and arms.  I turned back to the road to focus on my driving.

            “Thanks for the ride,” he said casually.  As if I were taking him home from school.  School seemed so far away now.  No one had been in school for weeks.  And I hadn’t been for months because of the medication.  It took away any and all motivation to do more than sleep.  “My name is Stiles,” he said, not looking away from the road. The strange name suited the strange kid.

            “Well, my name is Derek Hale.  Nice to meet you.”

            “Where you headed to Derek?”

            “Away,” I replied with a slight smirk on my face.

            “Too many memories in an empty house?”  I raised my eyebrow at him.  The kid was too perceptive by half.  “It’s not hard to tell really.  You’re driving a mom car.  You are driving it alone and it’s the middle of the day.  You also have no destination.  Therefore you must be running.  You are kind enough to pick up a guy off the side of the road, so asshole is off the table.  So is serial killer because I am clearly still alive.  There is also a picture of a smiling you with a big family on your dash, which shows that you had a nice house and a nice family.  None of them are here.  Therefore, you are a recent orphan who left home for nothing.”

            “Takes one to know one,” I mumbled.

            “False.  I have a family.  I just don’t know where they are because they were vacationing in New York when it all started.”

            “That’s tough.”  The Disease started in New York.  It’s well known that almost everyone there is dead.  But to give Stiles credit, he had hope.  Not that I could judge.  One of the only things that kept me waking up in the morning was the thought that Laura is alive and well somewhere out there.  But then I’d heard about New York.  It was apparently a wasteland.  I had been thinking of heading up there myself, but didn’t know if it would be for the better or not.

            “Yeah.  What do you know about The Disease?”

            “Only what I hear from others.  There’s a rumor going around that a lab in New York exploded and toxic fumes escaped.  They infected the city over night and by morning most everyone was dead,” I said, unsure as how to continue.  New York was a hard topic for everyone.  Let alone two people whose last family members were there when The Disease started.  “Hungry?”  I asked because we were passing a vacant supermarket.

            “Starved, actually.  I haven’t eaten since yesterday.”  It was around 5:00 now.  As good as any time to stop for dinner.  I pulled up right in front of the store and parked.  “After we will see if we can find gas.”

            I pulled the car up right in front of the supermarket.  Stiles got out of the car and looked back at me, “What do you want?”

            “I’m usually good with anything,” he nodded and entered the store.  I was grateful that he didn’t have to ask why I wouldn’t go in.  As horrible as my car was, it was mine.  And I had lost my dad’s car in the chaos a couple weeks back.  Luckily my brother’s was still in the driveway when I was ready to return home.  Probably because it needed some tweaking to even get the engine going.  Little Red had been old as balls before The Disease, and it was even older now.  Not being in use for two months can do that to a hunk of junk. 

            I was careful to keep a look out for anyone in the area, but only saw a couple of people who seemed happy to just get on their way.  That was the good thing about this car, too.  No one wanted to bother to steal it.  The passenger door opened and Stiles quickly got into the car, “We probably want to drive.”  I looked at him, prepared to ask him why he sounded stressed, but out of the corner of my eye I saw.  A group of about 10 people came out of the store, wielding bats and guns and whatever else they could find.  Shit.  After The Disease a lot of people had joined gangs, or some similar group, and laid claim to particular areas.  This must be theirs.  I floored the car and it stumbled and shook slowly into gear.  We got out of there with enough time, but I think that’s because this group seemed to be mostly of suburban folk.  They usually don’t go to the trouble for one or two stragglers who get a couple of candy bars.  I’m surprised they even bothered chasing Ian out of the store.

            Or I was, before I looked at the stash.  The kid had grabbed chicken, peas, and a bag full of cans.  “How did you manage to get all that?”

            “I’m light on my feet,” he shrugged and dug into a chicken leg.  He offered me the other. 

            “Holy shit, this is still warm!”

            “What can I say?  I’m a high quality lad.”

* * *

            It was late when the car spurted, out of gas.  I was used to it by now and scanned the surrounding area.  Nothing.  In the chaos, and then the delicious aftermath, of our trip to the supermarket, I had completely forgotten to get gas.  Where was my head?  I need to focus.  This never would have happened had I not picked Stiles up.  I wouldn’t have stolen and had to book it from town and right now, I wouldn’t be hauling my ass down the side of the road looking for any abandoned cars.  I had left Stiles sleeping in the passenger’s side of the car.  He should be fine.  I finally spotted a couple of cars and went to check that they were abandoned. 

            They were.

            They usually are.

            There were three cars and I managed to get a decent amount of gas before they ran out.  Enough to get the car further down the road.  I would have to remember to add to the stash I usually had in the trunk.  It wasn’t like me to forget things like this when I went on trips.

            But I went on my last road trip with my sister and if anything happened we could’ve called any number of people to come pick us up.  And gas stations had been open.  Christ, do I miss gas stations.  And toilet paper.  Toilets in general are pretty fabulous. 

            I found myself still reflecting upon the beauty of personal hygiene when I was almost flattened by a solid mass hurling at me.  I managed to stay up through the kind of grace that one learns when one has many siblings.

            “Jesus Christ!  What was that for?”  I shouted at the shape that had hurled into me.

            “Derek?  Is that you?”  So the shape was Stiles.  Figures.  “I thought you had left me to die alone in your car!”

            “First of all, if I don’t care enough to lure you out here to die.  Second, I picked you up on the side of the road, I’m sure you could have handled it.  Third, I was getting gas.  And fourth, I left a note!”

            “Oh.  I didn’t see the note.”

            “I stuck it to your face!”  How was I even having this conversation?  I got to the car and filled the tank, I put the rest of the gas in the trunk after making sure it was tightly closed.  Stiles had gotten back into the car and looked like he had fallen asleep already.  I couldn’t help but smile to myself as I got in the car and started driving again.

            And if at the next intersection, I headed North-East instead of West, well then, I saw no reason why anyone should need to know.


	2. Three Teens

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here is the next chapter! Please tell me what you think! I will be ignoring any canon character death whenever I please. Hope you enjoy!

            Stiles and I had been on the road to New York for a week before Little Red went quit out on us.  She shuddered to an angry sounding end.  I figured that it was a good death.  She ran loudly so she died louder.  Stiles and I grabbed our bags and I grabbed the rest of the gas, and we continued down the road.

            We were walking on tired legs and I was about to call it a day when a large van sped around the corner into view.  I grabbed Stiles and jumped off of the road, ducking and trying to avoid whoever was recklessly driving the dangerous vehicle.  I figured they would keep on driving, but the van stopped, very suddenly, right in front of where we lay on the side of the road.  It looked like Stiles was ready to yell at me for mauling him, but I cut whatever he would’ve said off with a glare.

            “I swear to god, Lahey,” a high female voice shouted the moment a door was opened.  I got off my ass to look at the car.  Inside were three teens.  The one talking was tall, blonde, and pissed.  “That is the last time you will ever drive!  I will make sure of it.”  One of the other guys got out of the driver’s side of the car and shrugged, smiling gently.  The blonde rolled her eyes and turned to Stiles and I, Stiles was still lying on the ground from when I pushed him over.  “Hello.  We were wondering if you wanted a ride?”

            “No, but thank you.  I think we have this under cont—“

            “We would love a ride!”  I was interrupted by Stiles.  “But we would be heading the way you just came from.”  Shit.  Of course the kid couldn’t just let it be.  Travelling alone was always better, and I had picked Stiles up for whatever random reason, but I refused to travel with some kids, especially reckless and dangerous ones. 

            Which is how I found myself sitting in the back of a car and travelling to New York.  I would’ve stayed behind and let Stiles go with them alone, but there was something about this kid that made me feel like I needed to stay near him.  I had started to like him, and enjoyed his company immensely.  It was new to me.  Even before The Disease struck out, I had never really had any connections that lasted.  Every relationship I’d been in, had gone miserably.  And since my last, I had drawn in on myself and not really communicated with anyone outside of my family. 

            At least the car didn’t smell.  It was getting to be very late at night, though, and seemed like everyone was ready for bed.  The fierce blonde, who’s name I’d later learned was Erica, pulled over the car and got into the back, letting Boyd take up driving duties.  Boyd was quiet and seemed very observant.  If I had to be stuck in a car of teenagers, I was glad that he was one of them.  The other, the one who had driven so recklessly, was named Isaac.  He was currently curled up in a ball and sleeping.  Erica buckled herself in next to him and quickly fell asleep.  Stiles was soon to follow, his head resting gently against my shoulder.

            “You can go to sleep to,” Boyd mentioned about an hour later.  “I’m a good driver, won’t let you die.”  He glanced into the back, awaiting my response. 

            “I’m not used to travelling with others.”  Boyd raised his eyebrows at where Stiles was drooling slightly onto my shirt.  “This happened recently.  I had just gotten used to having one person around, and now there are four.  It will take some getting used to.”

            Boyd nodded.  “I understand the feeling.  When Erica and Isaac and I first joined team, it was difficult, to say the least.  I wasn’t used to having people I could count on and trust, and it took me awhile to get myself to trust them, and to get them to trust me.  But now, I can’t imagine having to be without either.  They're my family.  I can’t even picture what my life was like before I knew them, though it was only a month ago.”

            “Yeah.  But the things I was doing and worrying about a month ago seem very far away from the now.  But I guess I was still worrying about the same things, just in a different environment.”

            “Where were you a month ago?  If you don’t mind my asking.”

            “I was in a hospital bed getting the cure to cancer.”

            “A yes.  The Cure.  It works well, at least for those who got it.  My school made all the students get the shot, so as to guarantee our future safety in society.  I remember the doctors and nurses coming in.  The first round they only treated those with any history of cancer in their families, but then the second round they gave it to us all.  There were some kids who left school entirely because they didn’t feel comfortable receiving an unknown pathogen.  They’re probably dead now though, most everyone who didn’t get it is.  Why’d you?”

            “I was diagnosed with a Gastrointestinal Carcinoid tumor on my Appendix.  There was a risk that it travel to other parts of my digestive system, so they gave me the shot and told me I was cured.  I never heard that it was wide-spread through the population, though.”

            “It happened days before The Disease, and only in the more prestigious areas.  I only got it because of school.  Apparently a full scholarship to one of the finest schools in the country has multiple perks.”  Boyd fell silent then, looking out at the road. 

            “As interesting as this is, you guys should stop talking,” Stiles mumbled sleepily into my shirt.  “It’s hard to be comfortable when your pillow is intent on talking.”  Boyd laughed.  I smiled.

            “Sorry, I guess I’ll have to never talk again.”

            “Glad to know we are on the same page,” he snuggled his head into the crook between my neck and shoulder and fell promptly back to sleep.

            “You should get to sleep to.  If I’ve learned anything in the past couple of weeks, it’s to take sleep when it’s offered.  And food.  But more importantly sleep.”  So I followed Boyd’s advice and I let my head rest on Stiles’.  And for the first time in a long time, I didn’t worry about what would happen while I slept.


	3. House Sitting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! Look at how quick I'm writing this. Notice that I changed the archive warning to add "Graphic Depictions of Violence." Check me out on tumblr if you want! My URL is doctorwhowhatwhenwhereandwhy.tumblr.com

            A couple of days later we found ourselves travelling through Indiana and needed to stop.  We didn’t need to stop often, only for bathroom breaks or food.  We slept in shifts to get the most out of every minute, which led to some very long and cramped days in the van.  It was a decently big car, but we could’ve been in a semi and gotten on each other’s nerves.  We had been making good time, but at the cost of our sanity. 

            “If you would stop squirming so much, I may be able to get some sleep,” Erica whisper shouted to Isaac, who was seated next to her.

            “If you weren’t so boney, I could get comfortable and stop squirming,” he responded harshly.

            “If you both stopped talking, you could all get some sleep,” Boyd said from his driving seat.  He was usually quiet and didn’t intervene, but this day had seemed longer than all the others, so I assumed even he was getting fed up with us.  Everyone fell quiet at that, and Erica and Isaac stopped fighting verbally, reducing themselves to hitting and elbowing.  Stiles had managed to stay sleeping on my shoulder and somehow hadn’t stirred in the slightest.  Though, upon closer inspection, he was awake and just ignoring everything happening in the car.  I smiled to myself. 

            “Ow!”  Isaac screamed from the back.  Boyd and I sighed and shared a look.  He pulled the car over and switched places with Isaac.  I got out and into the driver’s side, which had Stiles glaring at me.  He had told me earlier that I was by far the best to sleep on.  I shrugged at him and shot him a look that I think said, _so not my fault_.  Isaac sat next to Stiles and I pulled back onto the interstate.  But their bickering didn’t stop.  It wasn’t so verbal anymore, but I could tell tensions were still high.  No one was even trying to sleep anymore, just stare out the window and look sulky.  I would’ve laughed if I wouldn’t have been killed because of it. 

I pulled into the wealthy looking area of the next town we passed and decided it was time for a break.  Stiles and Isaac looked confused, but Erica and Boyd looked relieved.  The moment I put the car into park, everyone was out and debating which house to stay in for the night.

“That one looks like it would have nice rooms,” Erica said pointing to the tan one.  It was a large house. 

            “Yes.  And food.  It looks like it would have a lot of food,” Isaac said, though it was unclear if he actually thought that or if he was just trying to get back into Erica’s good graces.  Whatever the motivation, she did look like she forgave him. 

            “But that other house looks so much bigger,” Stiles said, but Erica and Isaac were already taking all the bags into the tan house.  He sighed, resigned and quickly picked up some more to carry in.  That was another thing I’d noticed about all of the teens, they took their bags with them everywhere.  When one went to use the restroom, the bag went to.  If someone was asked to grab food, they also grabbed their bag.  I was impressed with their self preservation skills.  I’d also learned that wherever you go, your bag goes.  You never know when something may happen that would lead to you needing to run.  And running without a bag was difficult.  My bag had all my survival necessities, plus my sentimental objects.  It had the picture of my family that I took from Little Red when she died.  It had my passport, just in case because you never know.  It had the ornament that Cora made me that I’d found on the floor of my house.  It had my mom’s engagement ring.  It had my brother’s favorite cookie recipe.  It had Laura’s diamond necklace from grandma.  It had my Uncle Peter’s worn down watch.  It was a little full, but everything in it was there to stay.   It was all I had left of my entire family, and you didn’t just give that stuff away.

            Boyd and I grabbed the rest of the stuff from the van, leaving it completely empty so that if anyone took it, they would only get the car and none of our stuff.  I walked into the house and was amazed at the scenery that awaited me.  The entrance room was huge and there was a great staircase running up both sides, leading to a massive hallway.  There was a path between the two stairs that led to a giant sitting room, and on the left was another staircase into the basement.  On the right was a massive kitchen, where Isaac was raiding the pantry and fridge.

            “Don’t bother with the fridge,” Stiles said entering the kitchen.  “It’ll all have spoiled by now.”

            Isaac looked at him, smiled, and shook his head.  “It didn’t.  These guys have solar energy,” he gestured to the window, where solar panels were visible.  “Everything in the freezer is still good.  And they have a giant TV in the basement, where we should totally watch a movie tonight.  And I can cook something.  We can have a real sit down meal!”  he said with such excitement that everyone agreed.

            “I can help you cook,” Boyd offered, clearing the counter of whatever mementos the people had left behind. 

            “No one’s gone upstairs yet…” Erica said, coming up from the basement.  She let the sentence hang in the air and Stiles and I took it for what it was.  If the people in this house had died here, that was probably where they were.  I nodded and headed up, Stiles following behind me, while the other three started on making dinner with whatever they could scrounge up in the house.  Sometime over the past couple of days, Stiles and I were appointed to search out areas for bodies.  It happened after Isaac had found a body in the bathroom and not wanted to go alone since.  Stiles and I decided to move and bury the body, thinking it would help Isaac get past it.  And it did.  But it also let everyone else in on the fact that we weren’t afraid to do some heavy lifting, (both literally and figuratively).  He went into the left hallway and I went into the right.  I checked every room, bathroom, and closet.  I was very thorough.  Didn’t want anyone to find one I had missed, because seeing a dead person while peeing is one thing.  But seeing a dead person while sleeping or showering, is another. 

            “Derek,” Stiles called, quietly enough that no one else would hear.  I knew what it meant.  I headed into the room that his voice had come from and peaked in hesitantly.  There were three bodies in the room and it made me flinch.  One was a woman, probably in her thirties.  She was dressed nicely and looked kind, even in death.  The man next to her was in a business suit.  He looked around the same age.  A briefcase was laying on the floor next to him, and a suitcase next to it.  I couldn’t help but think that he must’ve just gotten home and packed to get his family as far from this disease as possible.  But that’s the thing about an airborne disease; you can’t run from it, at least successfully.

            The worst part was that there was a young girl lying down next to them.  She was in a sundress and her hair was pulled into a perfect ponytail, even in death.  She was curled into her dad’s side, as if hugging him.  I couldn’t look any longer, but I couldn’t look away.  I knew from experience that the younger they were, the longer it took for them to die.  It took some kids days to die from The Disease.  She had watched her parents die, and couldn’t have done anything.  She had just hugged her father and waited for death.  I finally tore my eyes away to look at Stiles.  He was still looking at the family.  I grabbed his shoulders and led him outside of the room.  I locked the door from the other side and shut it.  There was no way we could move them without the others noticing.  I grabbed a sticky note from one of the other rooms.  I wrote, _Not this room,_ and plastered it to the door.  I knew no one would dare to question it.  I finished the rest of Stiles’ side, knowing there wouldn’t be anything. 

            When I was done, he was sitting on the ground outside of the same door.  I slid down onto the floor next to him.  Neither of us spoke for a long time, until he said, “They were trying to run.  I just…It’s just that it’s…” He took a deep breath and focused on the floor.

            “I know.  It’s so unfair.  They didn’t deserve it.  No one deserved it.  But nothing can come from sitting here.  They’re dead and it’s not going to change.”

            “How can you be so okay with it?” he asked.  And even though I knew it wasn’t supposed to be an insult, it still stung.

            “I’m not okay with it.  I’m just more in control of it.  My family’s dead.  And I didn’t just hear about it.  I watched it happen.  My dad died first.  He had stopped talking mid-sentence and just froze.  His eyes went wide as he tried to take in a breath.  He was failing, and he collapsed.  My mom ran over to him and held him in her arms as he died.  She was next, suffocating on air while crying for her husband.  No one knew what was happening.  You don’t feel it until it hits you, and then you’re dead.  She fell on top of him, and then I heard a crash and a scream from the other room.  My Uncle Peter had died, and my brother was holding my sister to his chest, comforting her, even as he forced himself to take in another breath.  I remember the look he gave me so clearly.  He was so confused, so scared, so devastated.  And then he fell, right on top of my sister, who was screaming so loudly that if anyone else in the neighborhood was still alive, I was sure that they would hear.  I thought that I would be next, but nothing happened.  I waited for whatever it was to hit me.  To kill me in front of my sister, but it didn’t happen.  Nothing happened.  I thought we had been saved.  I went over to my sister and pushed my brother’s body away from her.  I picked her up, still screaming, and left the house.  I took my dad’s car into town, where we found the few other survivors.  We decided to stay in the supermarket, until we knew what was happening.  I didn’t leave Cora’s side for a couple of days, needed to know that she was still safe. 

            “But one day I did.  I went on a supply run with a couple others.  I was one of the only older survivors, the rest had slowly died.  We were out of toilet paper.  I shouldn’t have left.  We could have lived without the fucking toilet paper.  I was gone an hour at most, but when I got back, most of the rest of the kids had died.  A second sweep of The Disease had killed off most everybody.  There were five people left who were still alive.  That was when I connected it to the cancer vaccine.  All of the people alive had been there the day that the doctors gave everyone the shot.  One man, Mr. Deaton, told me that my sister was dead.  He wouldn’t even let me see the body because we didn’t know how certain it was that we wouldn't be affected.  He and the others said that we should all stay together, shouldn’t separate.  I ran back to my house later that night.  Took a bag and filled it with whatever I found.  I took my brother’s car and ran.”

            “I’m sorry,” Stiles whispered.  “I didn’t know.”

            “Because I didn’t tell you,” I stated, matter of fact. 

            “If your family’s…” he hesitated.  I patiently waited for him to continue.  “Why are you going to New York, then?”

            “My other sister, Laura, was in New York when it started.  She’d be the last family member I had, if she’s still alive.”

            Stiles nodded.  “My entire family-- my dad, his wife, and my best friend-- was in New York for the holidays.  They were on a trip and I was going to go with them, but didn’t because I had a final to take.  I was in the airport when people first heard about The Disease.  It was all over the news channels and everyone was suddenly on their phones.  Every plane was canceled when the report that it started in New York came out.  I tried calling my dad and my best friend, but there was no answer, even when the phone connected.  Then, not an hour after learning about it, people started dying.  Children were crying and everything was chaos.  So I left the airport.  I grabbed my bag and headed home.  The entire way I kept calling everyone I knew, trying to get a hold of someone.  I was pulling into my driveway when Scott finally answered his phone.  The connection was bad and it was obvious that they were running, but he got through that everyone was safe for the moment.  I lost the call before anything else could happen, then the phones went down completely.  Electricity died.  Everything stopped functioning.  I grabbed the necessities and a few random things, and left the house.  My jeep stalled a couple days later, and then I started walking.  That’s when I met you.” 

            He hadn’t looked at me while talking.  I reached over and grabbed his hand.  He squeezed mine tightly in his, taking comfort where it was given.  We sat for a while, just breathing and thinking.  Eventually I got up and offered him my hand.  He took it and wiped tears I hadn’t realized he was crying off of his cheeks.  The others would know that we found something, but hopefully they would have the brains not to ask what. 

            We walked downstairs and Boyd and Erica eyed us suspiciously, Isaac completely ignored anything awry that he noticed.  He focused solely on his cooking and asked us to set the table.  Shortly after, dinner was ready.  He had found some frozen pizza and ice cream in the freezer.  He had also found some chips and a couple boxes of mac and cheese.  He had set those aside, planning on cooking them later.  I didn’t know how he planned to boil the pasta, but I had learned not to question Isaac about his plans.  There was also some chocolate syrup and peanuts that we used to top the ice cream.  By the end of the meal, we were full to the brim and enthusiastic about the rest of the night. 

            Erica had picked out a movie for us to watch.  She had chosen _Iron Man._   We all happily watched it before also watching the second _Iron Man_ to follow it up.  We all then headed upstairs to our separate rooms.  I was looking forward to the solitude of sleeping alone for the first time in a week, but my solitude was short lived.  About an hour after laying down for sleep, my door opened and a slim figure walked in.

            “I can’t sleep alone,” Stiles said sleepily.  He didn’t say anything else.  He didn’t need to.  I slid over in bed, and he cuddled up next to me.  I was hesitant and didn’t move for fear he would wake up and leave, but eventually relaxed and got comfortable. 

            Just after I had started falling asleep, there was a bang in the hallway and someone swore.  My door opened again and Erica entered the room.  She didn’t say anything, just pushed Stiles and I aside as she got comfortable on the bed.  Then Isaac entered and did the same.  Eventually even Boyd came into the room, though he did so sheepishly.  We all slept together on the big king bed.  I couldn’t help but find it funny.  We had pulled over so we could all breath a little and get a good night’s sleep without anyone else breathing down our necks, but here we were all piled together in one big bed.  I fell asleep with a smile on my face, which had started becoming the norm, rather than an oddity.

* * *

            We were closer to New York than I ever thought I’d be.  I had contemplated the idea of going and looking for Laura, but never actually thought that I’d act upon it.  The journey itself was very pleasant.  But the destination had me spooked.

            New York was a wasteland.  I’d heard it from everyone that I had mentioned it to.  No one had walked out of the entire state unscarred.  Let alone the one survivor I crossed paths with who had been in the actual city.  The man didn’t talk at all.  There were rumors that things were even worse in New York City.  I didn't let myself believe those rumors.  I didn't want to.

            The closer we got to our destination, the more ruined the towns became.  We rarely ever ran into anyone else anymore.  The only people we saw were laying on the ground, cold and dead.  If the others noticed, they never mentioned it.  And as grateful as I had become for the companionship, I couldn’t help but be ever on edge, waiting for the day when Erica, Boyd, and Isaac would tell us that they couldn’t go further.  Only, they never did.  It was the night before we were planning on entering the city when we decided to spend the night in a house again, something we only had done that once.  Most of the time, everyone drove in shifts, sleeping when we could.  The only person who wasn’t allowed to drive was Isaac, for obvious reasons.  But we decided it would be for the better if we all got some sleep the night before.  And I can honestly say that this was the smartest decision we made for a while.  Would’ve been even smarter if we had cut our losses and recognized our families were dead (or at least lost to us) and headed back south.  I had heard that a town in California (Beacon Hills?) had gotten some form of electricity back and was looking to reestablish a government.  Maybe we could head there after New York.  Probably would have been smart to just head there initially, but tell that to a group of kids who thought that they were invincible. 

            We chose a nice looking house to spend the night in again, made sure that this one also had solar power.  I’d like to kiss the environmentally friendly saps that spent all that money on those panels.  They made our lives so nice.  Isaac, Boyd, and Erica went to the kitchen to scour for some dinner and Stiles and I went upstairs to search out the rooms.  Luckily there were no bodies to be found in this house.  We ended up cooking the mac and cheese that Isaac had swiped from the other house we stayed at.  It was decent, but tasted off because the cheese mixture had been made with water and no butter.  We also watched Captain America and Thor.  Erica had taken all of the Avengers movies from the other house.  That night we all went to bed in separate rooms, but everyone still ended up in my bed anyway.  There was something about the comfort of having always been with them that being without them difficult.  We never talked about it, but we all understood.  Everyone any of us had cared about had been ripped from our grasp, and now that we had come to care about each other, we didn’t want to lose anyone else.


	4. New York City

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry that it has taken me so long to update, I kind of lost track of things for a little while. 
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoy the read!

We entered New York City early in the morning.  We left our van at the house where we spent the night and took another, smaller car.  We were cramped, but this car was easier to maneuver around the other vehicles that cluttered the roadways.  Once we got to enter the actual city, there was no room for our car to move at all.  Up to that point no one had talked, but then Boyd stopped the car and announced that it was time we started walking.  

The city was creepy.  It was noiseless in the way that a large city should never be.  I turned to Stiles, "Where was your family staying?"

"Uh, the Double Tree Suites in Time Square.  How about your sister?"

"She would be at NYU," if she's alive.  

Boyd came up to where Stiles and I were talking, he was holding a map.  "It looks like we are around here right now so Times Square is closer.  Let's head there first and then we can go to NYU's campus."

"Sounds good to me," I replied.  We started walking in the direction that Boyd had pointed.  Stiles, Erica, and Boyd were a little way ahead, leaving me following with Isaac.  I glanced at him and realized that he was pale and looked about ready to shit himself.  "Not that I don't appreciate it, because I really do, but why did you guys come with us?"

He looked to me and smiled, "Because, I've wanted to come to New York since I was a child.  It's a little different than how I imagined it, though.  A lot quieter too."  I smiled.  "Come on, slow poke.  We're falling behind," he said and dragged me to catch up to the others, who had stopped walking.  When I turned the corner I saw why.  The entire block was filled with dead bodies.  Stiles shivered and grabbed my hand.  I help onto his tightly.  

"Come on," I said, making a path for the others to follow me, trying my utmost not to step on a body.  It was difficult, especially with Stiles clinging to my hand, but I managed.  We continued on with all of them following in my footsteps until we reached Time Square.  

It was worse than I had hoped.  There were bodies everywhere.  Men, women, and children cluttered the square.  Erica’s gasp made me look behind me, but my vision paused when I saw Stiles’ face.  My heart lurched.  He was pale and visibly shaken and he was having obvious difficulty drawing a breath.  I reached behind me and pulled him in.  “Stiles, Stiles it’s okay,” I whispered, “They could still be okay.  They’re smart, and they could be fine.  But you’re okay, we’re okay.  It’ll be okay.” The promises felt stale on my lips, I couldn’t know that we’d be okay.  But I whispered to him over and over until he managed to calm down, until he was able to stand on his own.  His breaths were still shaky, but he shook his head when I offered my hand.  

I looked over at Boyd, Isaac, and Erica.  They had all fanned out and were looking around the square.  Boyd noticed my attention and pointed to a sign that had been hastily taped to one of the main billboards.  **Survivors: Stay Here.  There will be a group of people to come pick you up at noon each day.** It was old and beaten, but underneath the main tarp was another, with slightly smaller writing.  **Last pick up date:  June 5 th.**  It had obviously been added so that survivors would know whether or not they would be picked up if they stayed/

“Does that mean we should wait, or not so much?” I asked, realizing for the first time that I didn’t know the date. 

“We should wait,” Erica declared, sure of herself.  “June 5th is today, so they are clearly keeping their promise.”

“How do you know the date?” Stiles questioned her.  She reached around and opened her backpack, drawing out a journal.

“Because I’ve been keeping track.  You never know when knowledge like this could come in handy, and now it has,” she couldn’t keep the smug grin off her face.  We all stood around, unsure what to do as we waited.  We also came to the realization that that meant we would have to spend the night here.

Isaac cleared his throat, “Anyone up for shopping?” 

Erica laughed, “Always!”


End file.
